Shiny Diamond in the Ruff
by GalaxianDragon
Summary: Even if other people think you are ugly, you can still find a place to call your home. This is a lesson that a little Trapinch learns.


Dislaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

"Speech"

'Thought'

 _'Quote'_

* * *

Sand.

It was rough, course, and seemed to emphasize solitude. Sandshrew, Sandslash, and Cacnea were rare in that they huddled close to keep each other safe in the unforgiving environment.

Baltoys remained inactive like they weren't even alive, the silent golem sealed itself in a cave, and Trapinch stayed under the sand.

So that left one green Trapinch with nothing.

She had to be used to living under the sand in solitude like the rest of her race, but there was something else about her lonely life. Humans had crossed paths with her several times and chose to leave her every time.

People would scream similar phrases in the same order every time.

 _'Oh, a shiny Trapinch!'_

 _'Ew! It's eyes are gross!'_

 _'I can't leave because of arena trap! Defeat it!'_

The Trapinch was a very unique Pokémon because her eyes were slightly misshapen and a burnt orchid color. Combining this with her green exoskeleton made her ugly to the people she encountered.

Assumptions of her ability to trap victims led to her feeling pain and then blacking out. Waking up later would grant her even more misery.

The feeling of being abandoned because of social beliefs were a different kind of loneliness than what she had felt naturally in the desert. Yet still, she persisted on with her daily life. There was nothing else for her.

Pressure from above the sand alerted her, somebody was close!

Experience conditioned her to not move. It would be best if it remained that way.

But that all came crumbling down when a foot landed on her head; she should have done a better job of digging in the sand.

Disoriented and confused, the Trapinch rolled out of the sand and surprised the human. A guy about 2.3 meters tall wearing some red eyes, he showed the same intrigue as every one else initially did.

"Oh, a shiny Trapinch!" Noted the trainer.

Pain hurt her as she remembered what occurred every time prior. Slowly, she moved backwards to avoid anymore suffering. Loneliness would ironically offer some comfort.

Something hit her back and she swerved around to a red pair of eyes.

A blue Kirlia was staring back with curious eyes, which were covered by go-go goggles. It showed great interest in the eyes of the Trapinch.

Immediately, the blue fairy looked up to the human and spoke to him with a childish glee.

"Can we please?" Asked the Kirlia with a voice revealing her gender.

The human responded by kneeling down to the Trapinch's level. Her breathing began to quicken as she was picked up by this strange man.

"The eyes look a little strange," said the guy nonchalantly.

Suddenly, she couldn't take it anymore. The tiny ground type Pokémon squirmed in the human's grasp. Impulsivity drove her to sink her jaw into his hand for freedom.

"OW!"

"Hey!"

She fell back to the sandy surface but was soon blinded by some light. Perhaps it was impossible for the pitiful creature to escape this painful cycle of repeatedly suffering as she met the empty blackness yet again.

...

Sensation was starting to return to her. The green Trapinch started to open her brown eyes and take in the world around her. There was no light, implying that it was night. The sand didn't feel so rough this time, it actually felt soft. A chilling breeze and soft hum adorned the air.

The green ant started to realize that she wasn't in the desert. Her head popped up in an attempt to understand what was going on.

So many colors were splattered on the walls, rectangles rested on smaller walls, she was laying in some soft thing, and the sky was blocked by a transparent, round thing.

Trying to comprehend all of this was much easier said than done. However, little chance was offered because one of the rectangles was moving.

The Kirlia slowly and quietly poked her head into the room. Her orange eyes quickly met with frightened brown ones.

"Oh, you're awake!" She rushed over quickly and then bowed. "I'm sorry. I attacked you without thinking because you attacked my trainer."

Expressions of sympathy were rare for the Trapinch, she didn't know how to respond.

"We brought you back to our home. You looked really sad and I felt bad," explained the Kirlia. "What's your name?"

Now this was a question that she had never even heard of. As a matter of fact, she had never even known of the concept of a name. Providing an answer to this question was too difficult.

"...Name?"

"Yeah. Do you not have one?" The blue fairy's expression was hung down with more sympathy.

"...I not know...what name is," explained the green Trapinch.

It was heart breaking for the Kirlia to hear all this. All wild Pokémon, even she, was like this at some point in their lives. She felt obliged to explain even further.

"Well, name is something that only you have. It makes you special." Surprisingly, this only made the little ground type turn her head away.

"...Me ugly...me not special...Eyes...gross..." Her statements started to sound more and more like whimpers.

The Kirlia approached the side of the bed, her eyes heavy with sorrow. It was no secret that the eyes of her guest were not average. Seeing past that was not difficult. However, she didn't see atrocity.

"You're not ugly. You're unique." The gesture of comfort drew the green Pokémon back to the blue one.

"...Unique?" The Kirlia nodded her head.

"Special."

So much comfort and so much kindness, it was opposite of anything she had felt before in the desert. It was meant to be cherished, and the source would need to be known.

"What name you?"

It took a few moments for the Kirlia to understand what that meant. As a teacher to a student, she gave answers.

"I am Hikari," said the blue fairy. There was a desire for more love and comfort from Hikari for the Trapinch.

She moved her head forward like a Growlithe eager to receive attention. "Hikari give name?"

Desperation was in those brown eyes; turning them down was just impossible for Hikari. Closely, she analyzed the green Trapinch to come up with a name. Something to relate to the desert might bring back bad memories. Attributing the eyes to an importance of naming could lead to bullying from other people and Pokémon.

However, with her eyes and her body color, a name could be formed.

"I'll name you...Tropicanica."

"...Trop...i...canica?" She still appeared a little hurt, but also intrigued.

"Yeah. Your eyes and skin made me think of tropical fruit," said Hikari. "They're colorful, sweet, and can be very pretty."

Sorrow and glee mixed in the young Trapinch's heart. Never had such kindness been offered to her. She nudged closely to Hikari as a way of showing her gratitude. A few sniffles escaped from her pitiful, yet happy state.

Responding gently, Hikari pet Tropicanica's head.

"So don't worry, you're not ugly."

...

Slightly opening the door, Hikari entered the living room. Her new novel entertained her greatly, so it was time to put it back on the book shelf with the others.

The blue Gardevoir would've proceeded straight to the bookshelf. However, she was offset by a touching sight.

Tropicanica, the shiny Flygon, lay asleep on the couch with a blanket hanging off the side. It was a truly something that the blue fairy wouldn't just ignore.

'She might get a little cold without this,' thought Hikari as she walked over and straightened the blanket.

A quick stir made it appear that Tropicanica had awoken. Such was not the case because her slow breathing continued. She did mutter something, though.

"Hikari...I love you...big sis..."

A happy tear fell behind Hikari's glasses when she heard that. Lightly petting the head of her little sister was the best way for her to show thanks.

"I love you too, Tropicanica."

* * *

Thanks for reading this quick fanfic, I hope you liked it. I based this off of a few shiny Pokémon that I do artwork of on my deviantart page. Please check them out. If you have anything to say, please leave a review.


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